Oct 1, 2026 · 1h 23m
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Iran’s endorsement puts energy prices at the center of midterm politics
This is Why Iran is Endorsing Democrats + DHS Sec. Markwayne Mullin
The episode links Iran’s reported intervention, household energy costs, and homeland-security enforcement to the political stakes of the next election cycle.
- 1The hosts interpret the IRGC’s anti-Trump message as evidence of Iran’s interest in influencing American partisan politics.
- 2They connect sanctions, oil exports, shipping routes, and refinery disruptions to gas prices and voters’ economic concerns.
- 3Markwayne Mullin outlines DHS priorities spanning border enforcement, maritime smuggling, election security, terrorism threats, and the 2028 Olympics.
Don't miss
Markwayne Mullin gives a broad account of DHS’s responsibilities, from terrorist apprehensions and migrant-child cases to border threats and election security.
The brief
The hosts open with the IRGC urging Americans to vote against Donald Trump, treating the message as an unusual window into Iran’s preferred U.S. political outcome.
The discussion shifts from rhetoric to economics, tracing how sanctions, oil exports, shipping routes, refinery disruptions, and futures markets can shape gas prices and midterm pressure.
A King of the Hill matchup pits Bill Kristol against Adam Kinzinger, with the hosts focusing on their breaks from conservative politics before naming Kinzinger the winner.
Markwayne Mullin describes DHS responsibilities that extend from terrorism and maritime smuggling to election security, cybersecurity, border enforcement, and preparations for the 2028 Olympics.
The interview’s central tension is operational: DHS must target serious threats and unlawful activity while facing political attacks over ICE, sanctuary jurisdictions, and enforcement priorities.
What was said on this episode
29 statements · 14 positive · 9 negative · 6 neutral
Terrorists oppose rewarding Americans with $5,000 payments.
“The only people who soon oppose it are the terrorists.”
Listen at 8:26
Democrats prioritize Gaza and Palestinians over American constituents.
“they care more about Gaza and the Palestinian people than they do about the American people and their constituents that they're seeking the votes to represent.”
Listen at 11:14
Iran has routinely killed Americans and U.S. allies for roughly 47 years.
“Iran has never been our friends been roughly 47 years where they've been routinely killing americans routinely killing our allies”
Listen at 12:51
Iran will have no functioning economy or exports after two weeks.
“Iran doesn't have an economy after two weeks. They don't have any exports.”
Listen at 14:23
The United States should pursue energy dominance and open more domestic refineries.
“we should have total energy dominance, we should have refineries opening in this country”
Listen at 18:27
Democrats thrive on chaos, institutional distrust, and breakdown of American families.
“Democrats as a party. thrive on chaos and cultural destruction and distrust in institutions and the breakdown of American families”
Listen at 21:35
The Trump administration eliminated Iran’s nuclear capability.
“you've eliminated a nuclear power that has said death to America”
Listen at 23:09
U.S. actions removed Iran’s nuclear capability and terrorism funding capacity.
“you've taken away the nuclear capability and you've eliminated their ability to fund and execute terrorism on our allies”
Listen at 23:47
The Trump administration will focus on driving energy prices down.
“the focus of this administration going forward is going to be make sure to drive prices down.”
Listen at 27:22
Democrats want voters to remain angry about prices.
“They want voters mad.”
Listen at 29:03
DHS found no credible evidence that the aviation incident was coordinated.
“There's no credible threat that says it was coordinated.”
Listen at 44:15
DHS prevents potential terrorist incidents every day.
“every single day we do prevent something. like this from happening if this is a terrorist attack”
Listen at 44:31
DHS field personnel keep America safe every day.
“they keep America safe every day”
Listen at 48:01
DHS’s mission is protecting U.S. sea, cyber, air, and land domains.
“our goal, our mission every day is to protect our sea, our fiber. or cyber, our air and our land.”
Listen at 48:53
DHS’s 270,000 employees protect cyber, sea, air, and land domains.
“270,000 of them, their goal every day is they're either protecting, as I said, cyber, sea, air, or land. And we deliver on it.”
Listen at 50:17
DHS is preparing for the 2028 Olympics and related security demands.
“The thing that we're posturing for is 28.”
Listen at 52:01
DHS counter-UAS operations during FIFA brought down 2,000 drones and made 700 arrests.
“we had counter UAS, right? We brought down 2,000 drones. We had 700 arrests.”
Listen at 53:46
Economically viable kinetic counter-drone technology is not yet available.
“That technology doesn't exist. We can jam them, but to actually be connected, it does exist. Don't get me wrong. But at an economic level, it doesn't exist.”
Listen at 54:12
DHS is working with industry to develop counter-UAS capabilities.
“we are working with industry”
Listen at 54:24
Mexicans comprise 76% of daily southern-border apprehensions.
“our apprehension right now is 76% of the people we apprehend on the border daily is – on the southern border is from Mexico.”
Listen at 1:00:58
DHS has shifted from defensive to offensive operations against attackers.
“We're no longer sitting there and just protecting as you try to attack us. We're swimming upstream now. We're going after the people that are coming after us.”
Listen at 1:01:58
The Trump administration arrested 2,210 terrorists in the United States.
“underneath President Trump, we've arrested, so far as my number is walking into here, 2,210 terrorists that's in this country.”
Listen at 1:02:48
DHS is trying to locate 450,000 children lost under the Biden administration.
“That's why they lost 450,000 kids underneath the Biden administration, too, that we're now trying to locate.”
Listen at 1:03:23
DHS sees Central Asian countries, Yemen, and Iran among major northern-border origins.
“on our northern border, the biggest countries we see are Stan countries, Yemen, And Iran.”
Listen at 1:04:40
DHS has doubled its arrests compared with the previous year.
“we've already did more this year. Actually, we've already doubled what we did this year versus what we did last year.”
Listen at 1:08:24
DHS prioritizes enforcement against the most serious offenders.
“we do go after the worst of the worst.”
Listen at 1:08:49
DHS averaged 4.2 additional arrests per immigration warrant served.
“we average not quite – we were averaging 4.2 individuals, collateral criminals, for every warrant we were serving on top of the warrant.”
Listen at 1:10:18
Mullin argues that portraying pervasive corruption and chaos can turn the U.S. into a communist country.
“The only way that you can take a republic or a democracy, but I call us we're a republic. We're not just a democracy. That's my opinion. People will argue with this, but we're a republic. Is the only way you can take a republic like the United States and turn us into a communist country. is that you've got to convince the majority of the people that there's corruption at every corner. There's chaos at every corner. There's lawlessness taking place at every corner.”
Listen at 1:14:22
Changing demographics is presented as a way to turn a red state blue.
“you've got to change the demographics.”
Listen at 1:15:16
Statements are attributed to the speaker as said on the episode and reflect their view at the time, not PodLume's. They are not advice.